JERUSALEM – Yemen’s Houthi rebels seized an Israel-linked cargo ship on a crucial Red Sea shipping route on Sunday, officials said, taking more than two dozen crew members hostage and raising fears that the Regional tensions heightened by the war between Israel and Hamas were developing in the near future. new seafront.
The Iran-backed Houthi rebels said they hijacked the ship because of its connection to Israel and took the crew hostage. The group warned that it would continue to attack ships in international waters that were linked to or owned by Israelis until the end of Israel’s campaign against Hamas rulers in Gaza.
“All ships belonging to or dealing with the Israeli enemy will become legitimate targets,” the Houthis said.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office had blamed the Houthis for the attack on the Bahamian-flagged Galaxy Leader, a transport vehicle affiliated with an Israeli billionaire. He said the 25 crew members were of various nationalities, including Bulgarian, Filipino, Mexican and Ukrainian, but that there were no Israelis on board.
The Houthis said they were treating the crew members “in accordance with their Islamic values,” but did not elaborate on what that meant.
Netanyahu’s office condemned the seizure as an “act of Iranian terrorism.” The Israeli army called the kidnapping a “very serious incident with global consequences.”
Yemen’s Houthi rebels seized an Israeli-linked cargo ship on a crucial Red Sea shipping route on Sunday.AP
Israeli officials insisted that the ship was British-owned and Japanese-operated. However, ownership details in public shipping databases associated the ship’s owners with Ray Car Carriers, founded by Abraham “Rami” Ungar, known as one of Israel’s richest men.
Ungar told The Associated Press that he was aware of the incident but could not comment while awaiting details. A ship linked to it experienced an explosion in 2021 in the Gulf of Oman. The Israeli media then blamed Iran.
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The complex world of international shipping often involves a number of management companies, flags and owners spread around the world on a single ship.
Two US defense officials confirmed that Houthi rebels seized the Galaxy Leader in the Red Sea on Sunday afternoon local time. The rebels descended on the freighter repelling it from a helicopter, officials said, confirming details first reported by NBC News. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to publicly discuss the matter.
Twice in the past month, U.S. warships have intercepted missiles or drones from Yemen that were believed to be headed toward Israel or posing a threat to U.S. ships. The USS Carney, a Navy destroyer, intercepted three land-attack cruise missiles and several drones launched by Houthi forces into the northern Red Sea last month.
Netanyahu’s office condemned the seizure as an “act of Iranian terrorism.” The Israeli army called the kidnapping a “very serious incident with global consequences.”
On November 15, the USS Thomas Hudner, another destroyer, was sailing toward the Bab-el-Mandeb Strait when the crew spotted a drone, which reportedly originated in Yemen. The ship shot down the drone over the water. Officials said the crew took steps to ensure the safety of American personnel and that there were no casualties or damage to the ship.
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Satellite tracking data from MarineTraffic.com analyzed by the AP showed that the Galaxy Leader was traveling in the Red Sea southwest of Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, more than a day ago. The vessel was in Korfez, Turkey, and was en route to Pipavav, India, at the time of the seizure reported by Israel.
He had his Automatic Identification System, or AIS, tracker turned off, the data showed. Ships are supposed to keep their AIS active for security reasons, but crews will turn them off if it looks like they could be a target or to smuggle contraband, which there was no immediate evidence to suggest was the case with the Galaxy Leader.
The British military’s UK Maritime Trade Operations, which provides warnings to sailors in the Persian Gulf and wider region, said the hijacking occurred about 150 kilometers (90 miles) off the coast of the port city of Hodeidah. in Yemen, near the coast of Eritrea.
The Red Sea, stretching from Egypt’s Suez Canal to the Bab el-Mandeb Strait separating the Arabian Peninsula from Africa, remains a key trade route for global shipping and energy supplies. That’s why the US Navy has stationed multiple ships at sea since the start of the war between Israel and Hamas on October 7.
Since 2019, a series of ships have been attacked at sea as Iran began breaking all limits of its tattered nuclear deal with world powers. As Israel expands its devastating campaign against Hamas in the besieged Gaza Strip following the militant group’s unprecedented attack on southern Israel, fears have grown that military operations could escalate into a broader regional conflict.
The Houthis have repeatedly threatened to attack Israeli ships in waters off Yemen.
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Source: vtt.edu.vn